Table of Contents
Show Notes
In this episode of “Three Fates Decide,” Liz and Mary delve into the intriguing world of “House of the Dragon,” the much-anticipated prequel to the iconic Game of Thrones series. We explore the fascinating idea that knowing the eventual ending doesn’t diminish the enjoyment of the show. Drawing attention to the show’s unique perspective based on a fictional history book, we discuss the potential biases of the author and how they shape the narrative.
As we share our thoughts on the first season, praising its quality and expressing our excitement for the second season, we also touch upon the potential impact of the ongoing writers’ strike on the show’s production. Join us as we dissect the decisions made by the characters, their consequences, and the intricate power dynamics in this enthralling episode. Don’t miss out on our analysis of “House of the Dragon” on the “Three Fates Decide” podcast. Follow us on your favorite streaming platforms and stay tuned for more riveting discussions.
In This Episode
- House of the Dragon: Enjoyment despite knowing the ending
- Writers Guild issue: Impact on House of the Dragon
- King Viserys’s choice of successor: Poor decision
- Damon’s character and the tournament
- Naming Rhaenyra as heir: Conflict and banishment
Discussion on Season Cliffhangers | 0:05:57 – 0:07:39 (102 Seconds)
0:05:57
But anywho, what else did you think about the season overall?
0:06:01
It was good, although I am just severely upset over the fact that they ended on such a huge cliffhanger. Yeah, and I’m like really. Yeah, I was like, of all the cliffhangers that they could have ended on, they ended on that. I’m like really.
0:06:19
Yeah, I’m like that, though, to be fair, it is a pretty good, though dramatic, way to end the season.
0:06:28
Oh yeah, it was a great way to end the season. But at the same time I was like gosh, darn it. I hate cliffhangers when they’re that good, because I’m like I have to know, I have to know Right. Because I’m like I have to know because the woman is going to burn it, she’s going to burn the world. Now she is going to burn the world, yeah, and if she doesn’t, then Damon is going to burn the world.
0:06:49
Yeah, yeah, surprisingly, damon is pretty attached to his stepson’s. Yes, not that it’s ever a bad thing, but I’m just saying he seems to be a lot more attached to them than you would expect. Yeah, I guess he’s not quite as jealous of her as you would expect out of a guy like him, but yeah, I think it’s more the fact that he had a little bit.
0:07:18
Hey, I don’t necessarily really think he’s so much jealous of her now as he was when she was younger. Hmm, because now he has her, basically Right, and I honestly think the only reason he wanted her at first was because she was named the heir, right. But we’re getting ahead of ourselves, yeah, yeah.
King’s and Princess’s Choice | 0:09:07 – 0:10:22 (74 Seconds)
0:09:10
Let’s just say they had to pick between Prince Viserys or Princess Rhaenys and, of course, considering the patriarchal society that Westeros is ruled by, they of course chose Prince Viserys over Princess Rhaenys. So he became King Viserys the first, correct? Yes, okay, yeah, I was trying to remember. I thought he was the first. Yes, he is the first, the first of his name, or something like this. How they do it? Yeah, king Viserys first.
0:09:44
Right, yes, which is unfortunate choice in hindsight, because you can clearly tell that Rhaenys is a stronger personality and she probably would have been more competent and less of a pushover.
0:09:57
She was the correct choice. However, she was a woman. Yeah, we’re not going to get into the political discussion of the patriarchy, the matriarchal societies and all this and all that Of the two. When you’re looking at them, especially as you go through the episodes, you see he was the correct choice to have picked. She would have been a wonderful queen. However, they didn’t choose her because she was a woman.
Game of Thrones Intrigue and Power | 0:16:42 – 0:18:38 (116 Seconds)
0:16:42
So anyway, six months after the events of the first episode, damon has taken over Dragonstone and, as you remember from the original Game of Thrones, dragonstone was the ancestral seat of the Targaryens, if I remember correctly. Yes, it was. Yay. I do remember my Game of Thrones because it’s been a while since I watched that too.
0:17:04
Well, there’s also pressure for the king to remarry and hopefully finally get a son, which is very strange that there would be all this pressure when everybody said that we are fine with Rhaenyra being the heir, but apparently they’re not really fine with her being the heir. And then there’s a confrontation with Damon due to the fact that he is occupying Dragonstone. But the last straw that finally makes them actively try to do something about him is the fact that he stole a dragon egg that was supposed to go to the poor deceased baby Baelon, who, as a tidbit to viewers who are not familiar with Game of Thrones, lore Baelon is also the name of their father, Damon and Viserys.
0:17:58
Yes, yes. And while all this is going on, we realize who has the power, and it’s not King Viserys. It would be his hand of the king, ser Otto Hightower, because he sends his daughter, who is a teenager, to console the king, who’s grieving over the loss of his wife, and to console him in private. So we all know what happens there. They don’t show it. Thank God they don’t show it. It’s heavily implied as to what she was meant to do to console the king.
0:18:30
Yeah, there’s a whole lot of creepiness in this episode with that part.
0:18:35
Yes, there is. There is pressure on Viserys to remarry.
Politics and Marriage in Game of Thrones | 0:21:16 – 0:22:27 (71 Seconds)
0:21:29
Yeah, if you understand how politics works in Westeros, it actually makes sense, even though it’s kind of weird the idea of Viserys marrying Lena. The thing is that politically speaking, it does actually make sense because she comes from a very important family, house Valerian. Her mother, is a Targaryen. It’s family keeping power within the family somewhat, and another bit of Game of Thrones lore is that actually House Valerian has married into House Targaryen at various points in history, so they’re all basically distant cousins of each other anyway, which is yet another reason why it politically makes sense for Viserys to marry her, considering actually his first wife, emma, was actually a cousin as well. But yeah, this just leads to more of a mess. Great job, viserys, great job.
King’s Health and Marriage Plans | 0:24:57 – 0:26:55 (118 Seconds)
0:24:57
But so one of the big things in this episode is the king is Sick. We don’t know what he has. We just realized that his health is declining and he is Insisting that renara needs to marry, to Form strong alliances and to protect their lineage going down the line. There was talk of her being betrothed to her stepbrother, prince Aegon. Thank God that did not happen.
0:25:25
Thank God, yeah, okay, since it’s house Targaryen, siblings or half siblings marrying each other is not that weird for them, but the real issue is the practicality of the fact she is 17 and at that hunt it was celebrating his second birthday.
0:25:42
Yeah, yeah, that’s why I said thank God this didn’t happen. I mean, I could have seen it if he had been like 10 or 12. Yeah, she was 17, because there’s no way a two-year-old is going to be able to consummate a marriage. And Sire airs right at all, and she’s 17. She can’t wait until he’s old enough, because by then, while she would not technically be too old to be bearing children, they would consider her to old to bear children. Right? Weird, yes. So Lord strong Recommends Sir Lane or Valerian, lord Corlys’s son, who is her cousin. Yeah, as a match to mend the rift between the houses, right?
0:26:22
and, to be fair, it’s also similar to the earlier proposal of the Sarah’s marrying Lena. It just politically and makes sense as well.
0:26:30
Yeah, it’s probably, but we find out something else in the next episode. Yeah, the next episode. We figure out a little something, we find some things out on a way. Actually, you know, Technically it’s the fifth episode but I think it’s implied in the fourth episode. Oh yeah, that’s true, it’s implied in the fourth episode. We realize it in the fifth episode.
0:26:50
Yeah, they made it very clear in the fifth episode. Yeah, yes. Yeah, I guess we’ll move on to the next episode.
Understanding and Complications in a Wedding | 0:30:32 – 0:32:08 (96 Seconds)
0:30:32
We light the way, oh, and conflicts are building, and this one, oh, yeah. The episode starts off with a suspicious death, which is murder, not so suspicious, that’s not suspicious at all. We know it’s definitely not suspicious, but everybody else.
0:30:51
Is it suspicious to everybody else? But we said they’re really. We know it’s a suspicious. Nope, Nope, not at all.
0:30:58
And then we see the two betrothed Cousins have a conversation where they come to an understanding and a certain arrangement, and it is pretty cool that Rhaenyra is very understanding of the fact that her fianceé is totally gay, yeah, and totally has a boyfriend, mm-hmm. So that’s cool, yeah. But of course that just complicates things because they do have the very practical point of we have to have kids at some point. Not sure how that was gonna happen, but they were gonna figure something out and so they have the wedding and drama happens. Where, at this point, is it truly a Game of Thrones wedding if there’s no death happening in it? Right, it’s almost exactly like a Dothraki wedding.
0:31:42
Basically, at this point this is like good lord, oh my god. So we realized that Rhaenyra is okay. I know you’re gay and you’ve this is your lover and that’s cool. I have a lover on my side too, so we’re good, but we are going to have children. We don’t know how we’re gonna have children, but we have to have children. And they’re like okay, sir Criston Cole, he wants to basically take Rhaenyra and run away and assume new identities and be together because he is in love with her.
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